Remembering Lesley Gore - My Tribute - Raise A Ruckus!

The passing of Lesley Gore is sad news!

She was really special, and for a brief time was also the coolest, most popular female entertainer around.

We feel sorrow for her passing and put forth our sympathies and well wishes to all her family and friends.

You Don't Own Me - Video

Lesley Gore, the early 1960's Pop Sensation, best known for her smash hit song from 1963 “It's My Party” has passed away from all of us. She succumbed to lung cancer on Monday in a New York Medical Center at 68 years young.

Her hit single “You Don't Own Me”, was very important and significant for it's time as it was an early feminist anthem during a coming of age / end of innocence period with the 1960's generation.

Lesley is best remembered by her fans for her hits “It's My Party” and the sequel to that hit “Judy's Turn to Cry” but she had other hits that made the Top 40 "She's a Fool" - "You Don't Own Me" - "That's the Way Boys Are" - "I Don't Wanna Be a Loser" - "Maybe I Know" - "Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows" - "Look of Love" and "California Nights." Along with these hits she had several other singles and many of these are fan favorites, even if they didn't chart very high.

She scored her big hits while a teen in school and after High School, her musical style no longer fit the popular trends and she decided to further her studies.

Lesley temporarily left the music business and attended Sarah Lawrence College - New York, and graduated with a degree in English/American Literature in 1968.

After finishing College, she focused on songwriting. When she did return to the music business, the high point of her career had already passed. Despite this, she never had any regrets and the few albums she released in the 70's never got the attention they deserved. If you are lucky enough to find them, they are real treasures.

She did have success again later when she was nominated for an Academy Award for co-writing the hit song, “Out Here on My Own,” with her brother Michael. The song was featured in the film, “Fame.”

In her life, she was never totally committed to, show-business, instead she had a more balanced and somewhat private life. She did perform on what is affectionately referred to as the nostalgia circuit, off and on from the 1980's up to more recent times. I think her last public performances were in either 2011 or 2012, I am not certain on that, but there are many great live performance clips that you can find on YouTube that cover her whole career. Playing concerts and appearing on many TV shows, Lesley always had a great time doing so, she had a rare quality among entertainers and that was that she had respect for the fans that loved her.

I seem to recall, having seen advertisements promoting an upcoming concert show featuring Lesley Gore, and I was amazed at that time to learn and see that she was still going, and going great and strong. I did not see that show for some reason that I cannot even remember, but now I wish I had.

When loved ones pass away, it seems the appropriate thing that almost everyone will say is 'Rest In Peace' and I myself am one of those who've done this as well over the years, but not any longer.

The last thing I would really wish for someone who passes is to rest...I say forget about all that crap, “Raise A Ruckus” and have yourself a Party.

Finally there has been some mention of a memoir in the works, but not much else as far as details. I would imagine something like this coming out eventually, and whenever it does, it will be an interesting life to read about.

Here's a list of Lesley's Albums

1. I'll Cry If I Want To – 1963
2. Lesley Gore Sings of Mixed-Up Hearts – 1963
3. Boys, Boys, Boys – 1964
4. Girl Talk – 1964
5. My Town, My Guy & Me - 1965
6. Lesley Gore Sings All About Love – 1966
7. California Nights – 1967
8. Magic Colors – 1967
9. Someplace Else Now – 1972
10. Love Me by Name – 1976
11. The Canvas Can Do Miracles – 1982
12. Ever Since – 2005

Most of these will be hard to find, but they are worth searching for. There are of course numerous other compilation albums that give you all of her hits and other singles, but if you don't get the real albums, you're really missing something special.

In the days ahead, there will be for sure, numerous articles about Lesley and hopefully they will provide you with more information than I am able to, this article is really more of a tribute to her on my behalf.

Please feel free to post links with better information in the comments section below, much appreciated.

For Those About Chris Slade - We Salute You!

How many musicians can you name that have played and recorded with Tom Jones, Manfred Mann's Earth Band, Denny Laine, Uriah Heep, David Gilmour, The Firm, and AC/DC and many others?

Well, if I did not mention AC/DC, you probably could not name such a person. As it is, AC/DC has been in the news for months, mostly about their new album “Rock or Bust” and most recently, about their Feb. 8^th performance at the Grammy's.

Chris Slade is the well traveled, man of the world and probably the only musician to have played with so many other great artists.

Chris will be filling in for longtime AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd. Phil is embroiled in a mess of personal legal troubles that prevent him from working with the band at this time, and AC/DC have called on Chris Slade to fill in for the band's upcoming world tour in support of “Rock or Bust.”

This is no surprise, Chris Slade worked with the group years ago, recorded with them 'The Razor's Edge” and toured with them, so bringing him back was an obvious choice.

For fans everywhere, this is good news.

Welcome back Chris!

Box, Copy, or Dropbox - Online Cloud Storage

Box, Copy, or Dropbox - Online Cloud Storage

Which is better?

Let's start with the best choice first...Copy offers you 15GB of storage with their Free Plan, the same amount offered from Google Drive and OneDrive. Box offers you 10 GB with their Free Plan, while Dropbox only offers you 2GB with their Free Plan.

I don't think it's going to take you very long now to figure this out, unless you're a (Kanye West-Jackass) fool!

Copy's cloud storage system and Box's are both better than Dropbox' in that it splits the shared folders space with the people you share a folder with, in equal amounts. So, if you have a 10GB folder shared between 5 people, that folder only takes up 2GB of space in each person's Copy account. It also kicks Dropbox' ass in speed!

Box is also a good choice, but they aren't as fast as Copy and they impose a ridiculously low file size limit of 250MB. That will be a problem for some.

Of the three I can assure you, because I have installed and tested all three with the same files, is that Copy is by far, the best choice. Box is your next best choice, although a little slower it should be your second option, and Dropbox is the worst! Get rid of it!

The worst thing about Dropbox is their desktop syncing app, it just sucks the life out of your system resources more than the other two. Their app is better uninstalled / deleted and just forgotten. They are now the biggest losers.

A few years ago Dropbox was the most popular and widely used, but in the time since they've become useless.

Copy and Box are both better.

As more and more transition to the cloud for file storage, these apps may help you. All three have smartphone apps and desktop software. You can also manage your files from your web browser, instead of installing desktop software.

All three offer paid and business plans. Here again, Copy has a referral program where you can get an additional 5GB of free storage when you get someone else to sign up, but only to the limit of 25GB. So, if you really wanted the extra free space, you'll only need to get two others to sign up. Box, on the other hand does not have a referral program.

Most of us already have online cloud storage space with the email account we use. Google Drive and OneDrive both give us 15 GB of storage space. This limited amount of free space is why these other companies exist. My best suggestion is to get both Copy and Box, and use them both as supplementary storage. The phone apps are very easy to use.

Snap a photo, click share and select Copy or Box to upload your file and keep your phone from getting bogged down with files.

Use both apps, as supplementary storage space, but I would not use or install the desktop software. It really isn't needed. Those apps are for local hard drive and syncing file management. They all use too much of your system's resources. Just use their web services through your browser and their phone apps.

The other nice thing about doing this is, if your phone died or was lost or stolen your files will be in the cloud. You can then access them from your web browser and do whatever you like.

In summary, I suggest that you sign-up and get both Copy and Box. Then, just as a friendly reminder, uninstall Dropbox if you have it. Just get rid of it!

Drunken Ginsburg - Suffers, but Survives Obama's SOTU

Our most senior/citizen, who refuses to retire, Supreme Court Justice has to drink herself stupid and pass out, in order to endure President Obama's annual State of The Union, (SOTU) and because of me, everything is getting better bullshit ramblings.

The picture captured, doesn't tell the whole story, but having to sit through President Obama's superbly crafted by professional speech writing bullshit artists was bad enough, having to sit amongst so many closeted gays, was the final straw that sent her straight for the bottle!

When called out on her lapse of professional etiquette, she simply says...

"The audience - for the most part - is awake because they're bobbing up and down all the time and we sit there stone-faced, sober judges," - "At least I wasn't 100% sober because before we went to the State of the Union we had dinner."

These remarks are her way of being politically correct.

Justice Scalia jokingly tells Ginsburg "Well, that's the first intelligent thing you've done." without realizing this isn't the first time she's been sauced up.

Apparently it's her only way to deal with the state of all things today. With that in mind, we won't ride her too much.



Cheers!

Joe Cocker - Fire It Up - Review

On “Fire It Up” Joe Cocker rocks out again with producer Matt Serletic. This album is a slick, polished production with a simpler approach in the arrangements that allows Joe and these songs to stand out more. Serletic helps further a continuity of a 'Joe Cocker Sound' that is a mixture of blues/rock – adult-contemporary, with a modern touch. There's no flashy musical hooks or solos, but all of the songs are truly outstanding. The track order is well planned and allows an overall album feel to develop.

The musical highlights include: Delicious Background Vocals with some Hammond Organ, Lighter more distinctive Drums, Blues/Rock Guitar, Occasional Acoustic Guitar, Clear Piano Play along with the occasional horns.

Joe Cocker is a gifted and soulful song stylist and seemed to always make his song selections his very own. Many of his versions have since become so associated with his voice and style, that other interpretations of the same songs seem empty and hollow.

Some artists' vocal abilities diminish with age, especially female vocalists, but that's not the case with some of the male vocalists, some age well. Joe is one of these exceptions, where his distinctive voice, matured with age, is as good as ever.

I rate this 4-Stars and say it's a must have. It's definitely an album you'll play over and over.

You can find it on Amazon or you could stream it from YouTube, whichever you choose, be sure to check it out.

Favorite tracks: Fire It Up, I'll Be Your Doctor, I Come in Peace, Eye on the Prize and I'll Walk In The Sunshine Again

Track Listing:

1. "Fire It Up"
2. "I'll Be Your Doctor"
3. "You Love Me Back"
4. "I Come in Peace"
5. "You Don't Need a Million Dollars"
6. "Eye on the Prize"
7. "Younger"
8. "You Don't Know What You're Doing to Me"
9. "The Letting Go"
10. "I'll Walk in the Sunshine Again"
11. "Weight of the World"

The album clocks in at just over 42 minutes. There are extra tracks on a Jewel Case Edition and another Deluxe Edition also includes a DVD.

Joe Cocker's Official Web-site

Beware of Juice Jackers

The term, “juice-jacking” was just a scare phrase used to get everyone excited. It is a phrase that means your personal data, via smartphone, laptop or tablet can be stolen.

The theory supposed … if you plug your mobile device into a random power charging station using your USB cable, your personal data is vulnerable to hackers and even... oh yea-big brother!

The whole sensation with regard to “juice-jacking” is old news. It was a much talked about thing after it was proven at a hacker convention. Since then it's mostly a forgotten moment, except for a few who are trying to make a profit out of someone else's paranoia.

So, it should not surprise you to see worthless, waste of money products to protect you from “juice-jacking” hackers from hell!

If you still have your mind set on throwing away some cash on this old craze, you should be able to find yourself the “USB Condom” or the “Juice-Jack Defender.”

From what I've read about these two products, they work as advertised. I am not going to review them, because even if they work as advertised, they are still a waste of time and money.

If you are really concerned about this, then spend your money on a USB Cable/Adapter that is charge only. You can find cheaper ones for under $10. on Amazon or you could make your own by following the instructions in the linked videos.

I wouldn't trust buying used USB cables from eBay and all of the retailers will be charging much more than what these things are worth. The better purpose of these products isn't from preventing “juice-Jacking” but to provide faster charging.

The lesson to be learned here is...don't charge your devices with a USB in a strange place! Charge your device to a real power-outlet and not some kiosk!

Now try to see if you can recall of anyone who has lost data from such an act as “juice-jacking” and when you realize that you can't, then maybe you will be able to cross that one off of your worry list.

Amazon - Cables

Video Tutorial #1

Video Tutorial #2

Bob Dylan - Shadows In The Night - Review

Bob Dylan ventures back in time with an unexpected covers album, and I don't think it's a stretch of the imagination to suspect the title itself is a clever play on words that recalls the golden voice of Frank Sinatra and his album titled Strangers In The Night.

The songs included here, were first made famous by Frank Sinatra, and many others long ago. These treasures from the golden age of song, are re-interpreted by Bob and his band and it's just a trimmed down nostalgia trip, not to remember.

Having always been a Dylan fan, it is difficult to dislike anything he's ever made with the exception of two or three albums over his entire career.

His previous album, 2012’s Tempest was one of those, while his 2009’s Together Through Life, I thought, despite generic session-man musicianship, was fantastic. But some things can not be improved upon and there are just some songs that should not be covered. Among those would be songs immediately identifiable with the late Ol' Blue Eyes himself.

In these modern times of ours and in an interview from a year a go Dylan said of himself and the sixties that although he was seen as the voice of a generation, he really never wanted that association.

Possibly, this covers albums is another reminder of that.

The ten songs featured on this album are generic in production, back to basics, versions of what are better remembered for their emotionally tugging orchestration and vocals. Ah...recalling the lush life, and then coming back to this latest Dylan effort, I too am fond of the classics, but this downsized effort only disappoints. His previous covers albums “Good As I Been To You” and “World Gone Wrong” were great, but the fault here is in trying to re-interpret a selection of songs known better by Frank Sinatra! It would be like Black Sabbath covering the Beach Boys or maybe AC/DC doing a covers album of Willie Nelson's Big Hits...just totally wrong, no matter how much he may love and respect the material, his style and voice don't fit. Pedal-steel guitar is no substitute for orchestral arrangements, The barely audible low key ensemble that would usually flesh out some second rate jazzy piece that include brushed drums, some double bass and the occasional brass are not very complimentary because these songs are all smothered with an awful country flavored pedal-steel and a voice that is better in the blues/rock genre than this. What a mess!!!

Many are rating this 4 stars, and there are many positive favorable reviews of this album, but not here!

Anyone writing positive reviews of this wreck, is either being paid to do so, delusional, sick in need of therapy or blindly stupid. This effort is, in every way, worse than bad. Maybe what burns me up most is that this is presented as a standalone new studio album. I would probably dismiss it more lightly if it were a part of his bootleg series, you know-the extras that fill in the gaps between his more profound original genius output. But this album gets no stars and may end up on a list of one of this year's worst.

There are many great Bob Dylan Albums and several that I will happily play over and again, but not this one. This album sucks! Heed my advice! Steer clear of this mess. If after reading this, you are still compelled to purchase, what will be 35 minutes of misery, then you deserve to get ripped off.

Quoting Mr. T - “ I Pity The Fool!”

Marshawn Lynch - Top 10 Answers to Any Question Asked

Marshawn Lynch - Top 10 Answers to Any Question Asked

  1. “I'm just 'bout that action boss”

2. “Yeah”
3. “Thanks for asking”
4. “I'm just here so I won't get fined”
5. “I'm Thankful”
6. “Maybe”
7. “Nope”
8. “I appreciate it”
9. “I don't know”
10. “I'm here and I'm available for y'all” …
    “and now I talked and all of my requirements are filled”

• Bonus - “I'm all 'bout that Flo boss”

“Y'all can go and make up whatever ya gonna make up” - Marshawn Lynch

For any and all other questions, just insert one of the above responses where it may appropriately fit.

Anyone could literally have a field day with this. Not only has Marshawn Lynch provided all of the answers to anything you may ever be curious about , but he has also given you the green light to write about it in any manner you wish. These comments have all been featured on (SC) Sports Center and have probably also found their way on to YouTube.

I'm only surprised that Saturday Night Live hasn't done a Marshawn Lynch skit yet, there is definitely a comedic angle to all of this that would be very entertaining.

In defense of Marshawn Lynch, I think it's a violation of his rights, by the NFL, to have to be available for questioning to the scumbag media. It should be optional. It's a violation of his privacy. The amounts he's been fined are also outrageous. It's just typical of today's (go to hell Goodell) NFL.

In support of Marshawn Lynch's true interests check out these links below.

Fam 1st Family Foundation

Marshawn Lynch Beast Mode Merchandise

#marshawnlynch

There are some you love to hate and some you hate to love, while others are somewhere in-between and maybe not at all on our radarscope of interest, no matter what, @moneylynch is a good guy and a better role model than many other NFL players.